Initiating drug therapy in early stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: does it impact the course and outcome?

Early chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is emerging in importance for the clinical and research settings. This review will highlight a proposed definition of early COPD, examine early and midlife factors that lead to development of early COPD and review the literature pertaining to the treatment of mild COPD to gain insight into potential therapeutic approaches for early disease.

Early COPD can be defined as disease occurring in patients younger than 50 years in age with a 10-pack-year or more smoking history and abnormal spirometry, imaging or lung function decline. Childhood exposures (maternal smoking and recurrent respiratory infections), childhood and adult asthma, and smoking affect middle-age lung function. Multiple studies of long-acting muscarinic antagonists (LAMAs) in mild COPD have shown improvements in lung function and symptoms scores. Smoking cessation also has a beneficial effect on longitudinal lung function.

Early COPD is an important manifestation of COPD, with a newly proposed definition and associated risk factors identified. Inferring from studies on mild COPD cohorts, LAMAs and smoking cessation may have a positive effect on longitudinal lung function and symptomatic improvement.